Makarova, N. I. Allegoric Portrait of the Duke Cosimo I de’ Medici in the Image of Orpheus

Abstract: The article is devoted to the analysis of an allegoric portrait of the Duke Cosimo I de’Medici featured as Orpheus (artwork by Agnolo Bronzino). Being an example of a man in love and a founder of orphism, for Marsilio Ficino and his followers Orpheus became a symbol of wisdom teaching people a virtuous and beneficial to society life. The author of the article makes a suggestion that Plato’s Symposium influenced creation of the portrait. Florentine humanist Cosimo Bartoli is viewed as a potential author of the iconography version of the portrait.

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